Virtual Lausanne Summit 2021

iSportConnect are thrilled to reveal that our annual Lausanne Summit in association with PwC will return next month, in virtual format for the second consecutive year.

The event will be taking place on Tuesday, September 21st 2021 between 2-5pm BST.

Our annual Lausanne Summit is for leading sporting executives from all across the world of sport, with the showcasing of the annual PwC Sports Survey a crucial tool for many within the industry to understand and gauge how sport as a business has adapted and changed over the past 12 months.

Stay up to date on the latest around the event on this page and across the iSportConnect social media channels on LinkedIn and Twitter, where you will find new speaker announcements and event details.

Thursday, September 16 – FIVE DAYS TO GO

Tuesday, September 14 – Tezos, ESL & Red Bull Racing & Red Bull Technology

Ralf Reichert

Reichert has grown up loving to compete, in video games, football or any other sport. While still going to university he joined forces with his brothers and friends and founded the now world renowned esports organization, SK Gaming.

Making himself a name in the community he came across a group of young entrepreneurs from Cologne with whom he co-founded and grew ESL to the largest esports company in the world. Ralf believes that video games are the most exciting entertainment medium available today and that esports as its competitive sports arm is changing society. As co-founder, thought leader and public representative, Ralf plays a crucial role in inspiring the company vision and continuing to drive it further. He shapes the conception of ESL every day in order to create a world where everybody can be somebody, and to offer countless players worldwide an opportunity to go from Zero to Hero.

Arthur Breitman

Arthur Breitman is the Co-Founder and creator of Tezos, a public blockchain enabling decentralised governance through self-amendments.

Previously, Arthur was a research engineer for Google X and Waymo. In his early career, he worked as a quantitative analyst for Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley. Arthur graduated from the École Polytechnique and the Courant Institute of NYU where he studied applied mathematics.

Aneesha Patel

Aneesha specialises in engagement and Loyalty marketing. Previously managing various loyalty programmes at American Express including Amex Offers UK, Aneesha now runs the NFT Programme at Red Bull Racing. She and her team are looking to create ownable fan moments that enhance a Fan’s interaction with the team as well increasing loyalty and engagement with the team. Prior to American Express, Aneesha worked at PwC and Interbrand.

Mark Lichtenhein

Mark has an accomplished career in strategic leadership across a spectrum of organisations from start-up to multi-national companies in both Europe and the US. He has extensive experience navigating challenging opportunities and managing complex political environments and is able to communicate effectively to colleagues, partners and stakeholders at all levels.

Tuesday, September 7 – International Judo Federation And Choicely

It is fantastic to be able to welcome Vlad Marinescu, Director General of the International Judo Federation (IJF) and Kaius Meskanen, CEO of Choicely, onboard for our Virtual Lausanne Summit 2021.

Vlad Marinescu

Vlad Marinescu is Director General of the International Judo Federation (IJF), President of International Esports Federation (IESF), and President of United States Esports Federation (USEF). He has worked in International Sport for over 15 years, working through each level of sport. From athlete, to event organiser in all departments, to management of sporting organisations and sport business.

Kaius Meskanen

Kaius founded Choicely to help businesses better engage and monetise their fan bases using highly interactive digital tools. Choicely enables customers to tell their stories for the Instagram generation on their own platforms through fun, interactive storytelling tools.

Tuesday, August 31 – George Pyne Joins Speaker Lineup For Opening Panel

George Pyne is the Founder & CEO of Bruin Capital, the global sports and entertainment company launched in 2015. Bruin is the latest chapter of his widely respected career architecting business transformation in a range of industries that manifest in billions of revenue and shareholder value.

Pyne designed Bruin to be a catalyst for developing best-in-class global companies with a formula of capital plus unmatched industry expertise and value-adding mission. This vision is backed by an extremely prestigious group of the largest private equity firms and family offices in the world. Today, Bruin’s portfolio of leading-edge companies operates on five continents with thousands of employees and relied upon by virtually every major sports league, governing body, brand, and rights holder, plus billions of consumers.

Bruin follows Pyne’s stewardship of IMG Sports and Entertainment, where, as President and Board Member, he is credited with the record earnings that more than tripled the company’s value and achieved a $2.4b sale price in 2014. Before that, as COO and Board Member of NASCAR, he transformed the sports’ commercial businesses and grew it from regional, niche entity into an elite U.S. sports league that realised billions in revenue and earnings.

George will be part of our opening panel discussing the 2021 PwC Sports Survey, alongside David Dellea, Julia Pallé and Charlie Marshall.

Wednesday, August 25th – Opening speakers announced

We’re delighted to announce that PwC’s David Dellea will once again be with us to take us through the findings of the 2021 PwC Sports Survey.

David will be joined by Charlie Marshall, Chief Executive Officer of the European Club Association, and Julia Pallé, Sustainability Director at Formula E, as well as one more special guest to be revealed shortly.

Event Agenda

2-3pm – Showcasing the 2021 PwC Sports Survey, plus a panel discussion reacting to the latest report.

3-3:10pm – Short break with the opportunity to network.

3:10-4:10pm – Second panel, powered by Tezos – Leveraging Blockchain And NFTs To Unlock The Future Of IP.

4:10-4:15pm – Short 5 minute break.

4:15-5:00pm – Third panel, powered by Choicely – Shaping Digital Transformation: Using Apps For Data & Fan Engagement

5-5:15 – Networking session

Register interest to attend the Virtual Lausanne Summit 2021 by clicking the button below or by emailing bethany@isportconnect-com

Notes on the event:

This event will follow Chatham House Rule, keeping discussions within the room and private for attendees in order to ensure a dynamic conversation.